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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27181610">fall: interlude</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lacerta/pseuds/Lacerta'>Lacerta</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Captain America - All Media Types, The Avengers (Marvel Movies)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Autumn, Canon Divergence - Post-Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Fluff, Gen, Multiple Personalities, Parkour, Peter Parker is a Good Bro, Post-Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Sharing a Body</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-10-24</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-10-24</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-07 03:01:43</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,229</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27181610</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lacerta/pseuds/Lacerta</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>The trees ready themselves for winter; their leaves are in all possible colours: greens, reds, oranges and browns. The wide variety of species makes the view even more stunning. Each of them turns to slightly different shades, each going through the transformation at their own pace. Their perfect blend is truly photo-inspiring.</p>
<p>That reminds Peter that he came here with one more goal in mind. He wouldn’t want to disappoint Captain America. He fishes the camera out of his backpack; he won’t be missing a perfect shot because he isn’t prepared.</p>
<p> </p>
<p>  <i>(This story is inspired by – and so far compliant with – kocuria's <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/series/1805338">Winter drabbles</a> series.)</i></p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>James "Bucky" Barnes &amp; Peter Parker, James "Bucky" Barnes/Steve Rogers, Steve Rogers &amp; Winter</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>8</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>86</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>fall: interlude</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><ul class="associations">
      <li>For <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/kocuria/gifts">kocuria</a>.</li>


        <li>
            Inspired by

            <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27066073">four seasons: fall</a> by <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/users/kocuria/pseuds/kocuria">kocuria</a>.
        </li>

    </ul><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Happy 26th of October, ko! (See? This is what happens when you don't tell people about your birthday. You get gifts for no occasion.) I hope you don't mind me playing with your AU for this short interlude!</p>
<p> ---</p>
<p>This story is inspired by kocuria's <a href="https://archiveofourown.org/series/1805338">Winter drabbles</a> series. It's not an official part of the series, but this is what might've happened between the scenes of the first chapter of <i>four seasons: fall</i>.<br/>If you haven't read the series: Winter is not exactly Bucky, and he doesn't know autumn. Yet.</p>
<p>(Unbeta'd, please forgive any and all mistakes!)</p>
<p> ---</p>
<p>Now with art by <a href="https://kocuria.tumblr.com/">kocuria</a>!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    
<p></p><div class="center"><hr/>
<p>
    
  </p><hr/></div><p>Peter uses social media, of course he does. He doesn’t live under a rock, thank you very much; he’s a gen-Z teenager in New York. Besides, it would be ironic if Spider-man didn’t know his way around the <em>web</em>.</p>
<p>As an artist, he has to admit that social media helps reach a broader audience. His photos might be featured in the Daily Bugle, sure, but people who revel in the newest reports about the Spider-menace aren’t exactly his preferred target group. They also aren’t the type to admire the photographic skill behind the pictures. </p>
<p>On days like this, however, when the weather is just perfect: sun shining bright and the first leaves starting to fall; Peter can’t help a pang of resentment. There are <em>tonnes </em>of pictures posted online, and while Peter’s all for people finding beauty around them and sharing joy, he wishes the Instagram feed didn’t desensitize people to the wonder of the season. These days even his friends scroll through his photos without a second glance.</p>
<p>He’s biased, of course he is. He unironically loves New York and, which most of his followers have no idea about, has access to the best sights of the city. Not just anyone can swing over Queens, and he likes to think of it as his private gallery. And fair, flying heroes could enjoy the view as well, but most of them, like Mr. Stark, don’t acknowledge it the way Peter does. He wishes he could share pictures taken so high above the milling life of New York, but that would raise questions that he’d rather avoid.</p>
<p>He wishes he could share those sights with Mr. Winter, and technically he could. Mr. Winter knows his secret identity. Peter has a feeling, however, that this calls for something different. A more hands-on experience.</p>
<p>Peter leads Mr. Winter parkouring all the way across Queens. He chooses his favourite route. They don’t race each other like they usually do; instead, Peter taps Mr. Winter’s shoulder whenever he knows the change in colours around them is particularly remarkable. The supersoldier slows down every time, just enough to look around, but Peter doesn’t let him stop and take in the view fully. It’s thrilling to find someone who’s never been exposed to autumn aesthetics, and Peter wants to make it <em>good</em>.</p>
<p>He doesn’t bother with finding the entrance; they vault right over the fence. Peter stumbles a few more steps and stops. Mr. Winter notices it a few feet later and turns back to frown at him.</p>
<p>Bouncing on his feet, Peter points his chin at the trees around them. “Look.”</p>
<p>Mr. Winter looks. And freezes.</p>
<p>Peter freaks out inside, briefly, because there's a 50/50 chance that it’s a bad sign. Then he notices that the metal arm hasn’t curled into a fist, like it does when Mr. Winter is stressed, nor has he moved into a fighting stance. It’s all good. His breathing is even, despite their haste on the way, and his face is blank, but Peter guesses that his sudden composure is a mask for feelings that would leave Mr. Winter more vulnerable than he likes.</p>
<p>The sight is impressive even to Peter, who visits Queens Botanical Gardens regularly. The trees ready themselves for winter; their leaves are in all possible colours: greens, reds, oranges and browns. The wide variety of species makes the view even more stunning. Each of them turns to slightly different shades, each going through the transformation at their own pace. Their perfect blend is truly photo-inspiring.</p>
<p>That reminds Peter that he came here with one more goal in mind. He wouldn’t want to disappoint Captain America. He gives Mr. Winter a moment to collect himself, and takes the time to fish the camera out of his backpack. He throws the strap over his shoulder; he won’t be missing a perfect shot because he isn’t prepared.</p>
<p>When he’s ready, he steps closer to the man and slowly, mindful of how easy to spook he can be, reaches out to tug on Mr. Winter’s sleeve.</p>
<p>“Come on, there’s more,” he says gently with an excited smile that he’s not even trying to hide.</p>
<p>The supersoldier blinks, frowns, opens and closes his mouth. The idea of there being more clearly doesn’t compute; Peter has to carefully stifle a chuckle that builds up in his chest. He doesn’t want to be a reason why Mr. Winter clams up, and vulnerable like this he’s likely to misunderstand the laughter as making fun of him.</p>
<p>Peter leads him on a footpath; they don’t have tickets but he wouldn’t want to attract too much attention to them even if they did. Thankfully, there aren’t that many people around at this time of a day and no one questions why they came out from behind the trees.</p>
<p>Here, the view is possibly even better. The trees are just as beautiful, but the flowerbeds add their own colours to the mix. It’s still warm enough that quite a few flowers are still in blossom, including the late-blooming roses.</p>
<p>Mr. Winter looks around with awe. Peter’s chest swells with pride that, after the first shock, the man doesn’t think to hold back this emotion in Peter’s presence. Then, the supersoldier moves. His strides look purposeful, but the random turns he takes as they wander around tells Peter that his purpose is likely seeing it <em> all</em>.</p>
<p>It’s fine with Peter; he skips around, both enjoying the scenery and snapping sneaky pictures. He knows they don’t go unnoticed, judging by Mr. Winter’s occasional grumpy glances, but the man doesn’t tell him to stop, so Peter doesn’t.</p>
<p>After they’ve walked all paths – some of them more than once – Mr. Winter stops and nods at Peter.</p>
<p>“This is…” he hesitates, likely searching through Mr. Bucky’s vocabulary for a good descriptor. “Pretty,” he finally settles on. “It’s pretty here. Thank you, Peter.”</p>
<p>“Anytime, Mr. Winter!” Peter answers truthfully. It might be Mr. Winter’s first fall to enjoy, but watching him discover the wonders that others take for granted is immensely gratifying, too. “Do you want to head back now, or…?”</p>
<p>The man tilts his head and moves as if to nod, but then he straightens up and looks briskly at Peter.</p>
<p>“Not yet. Wait here.”</p>
<p>He steps off the footpath. There aren’t many fallen leaves, not yet, but Mr. Winter sharp eyes find them among grass without any trouble. He picks one of them, then another, and raises them close to his face. His frown shows his focus on a task, even though Peter is unsure what it is exactly. When he drops one of the leaves and picks another from the grass only to repeat the process, Peter risks a guess that he’s choosing one he likes most. He bites his lip in effort not to audibly aww at that.</p>
<p>A stranger passes them, sending Mr. Winter a strange look and raising his brows, but the supersoldier ignores him, fully absorbed by the leaves. Peter rolls his eyes behind the stranger’s back. Killjoy. He’s glad Mr. Winter didn’t look their way.</p>
<p>When Peter looks back at the man, the smile comes back onto his face. He wants to capture the delight on Mr. Winter’s face once he finds what he’s looking for.</p>
<p>***</p>
<p><span class="u">From:</span> 	Peter Parker</p>
<p><span class="u">To:</span> 	Steve Rogers</p>
<p><span class="u">Subject:</span> 	Photos as promised</p>
<p>Mr. Steve,</p>
<p>you’ll love them.</p>
<p>- PP</p>
<p>
  <strong> <em>fall.zip</em> </strong>
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